A full 2025 season preview for Haas Factory Team from team outlook to driver analysis before the new Cup Series season gets underway.
Editor’s Note: Today’s Haas Factory Team preview continues NASCAR.com’s countdown of team previews for the 2025 Cup Series season.
HAAS FACTORY TEAM
Manufacturer: Ford
Engine: Roush-Yates Engines
Driver-crew chief pairing: Cole Custer-Aaron Kramer (No. 41)
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Team outlook: Following the announcement of Stewart-Haas Racing’s closure at the end of the 2024 season, the Haas Factory Team is set to enter 2025 with a renewed focus and a new identity. Cole Custer will make his return to the Cup Series after spending two years in the Xfinity Series. The new single-car Cup Series team will be under close watch as it aims to return to successful performances and competitive racing throughout the team’s past lineage. Rookie crew chief Aaron Kramer will lead the No. 41 Ford Mustang after spending time as a lead race engineer for RFK Racing.
COLE CUSTER, NO. 41 FORD
Experience: 3 full seasons in the NASCAR Cup Series
2024 stats: Runner-up in NASCAR Xfinity Series; 2 wins, 14 top fives, 23 top 10s, 3 poles
2025 championship odds (DraftKings): 250-1
Outlook: While yes, it is true that the 26-year-old from Ladera Ranch, California, moved from full-time Cup racing to Xfinity Series racing in 2023, that move was met with much success for the former driver of the No. 00 Ford Mustang. Custer was able to win the 2023 Xfinity Series Championship and notch a runner-up finish in the standings in 2024. “Stone Cole” will look to bring that confidence and speed back to his familiar home in the No. 41 Ford Mustang from back in the SHR days. Returning to his fourth full-time season in the Cup Series, the Haas Factory Team shop will shift its focus from what was a four-car entry to solely on Custer’s machine, which should pay focused dividends.
MORE: 2025 Cup Series schedule
BOLD PREDICTION: Custer enjoyed one victory driving the No. 41 previously in the NASCAR Cup Series, with his win at Kentucky Speedway in his rookie season in 2020 being his only appearance in the postseason festivities. For 2025, Custer and the No. 41 will find their way back to Victory Lane once again and will go as far as the Round of 12 in the NASCAR Playoffs, putting the Haas Factory Team back in contention for the Bill France Cup at the end of the season.